Leadership and earn-share strategies

The long-term legacy or short-term success?

Branding involves the strategic art of claiming your territory in the marketplace, choosing how you grow, and deciding how you influence consumer perception. Are you the brand that reshapes your entire marketing category, broadening the market and setting the pace? Or are you the disruptive newcomer, cleverly carving out a niche from under the established giants?

This essential strategic choice comes down to two approaches: Leadership and Earn-Share strategies. Both pathways can lead to success, yet knowing precisely which fits your brand is the difference between thriving and fading away.

The leadership strategy: expanding the kingdom

Leading brands think differently. They’re less focused on directly competing and more intent on expanding the marketplace itself. Rather than fighting over a limited slice of the pie, they bake a larger pie, positioning themselves to naturally reap the largest rewards.

Consider Apple, Nike, or Coca-Cola. These brands rarely engage in direct competition or comparative marketing. Instead, they set new benchmarks, consistently innovating and shaping consumer expectations.

How market leaders win:

Category expansion
Actively convert non-customers into customers by increasing the overall appeal and accessibility of the category itself.

Defining the narrative
Innovate and consistently deliver on quality, becoming the standard against which all others are measured.

Building trust and loyalty
Consumers instinctively choose leaders due to familiarity, reliability, and an emotional connection to the brand.

Prioritising longevity
Leaders seek long-term, sustainable growth rather than quick, short-term gains.

Starbucks perfectly illustrates this approach. They reinvented coffee as a global lifestyle experience. They expanded coffee drinking beyond mere necessity into something aspirational and social.

The earn-share strategy: precise, targeted disruption

Not every brand starts at the top. Many successful brands begin as disruptors, targeting specific market niches that established leaders ignore or underserve. Earn-share brands strategically focus on capturing existing market share rather than expanding the overall category.

Successful challengers typically:

Identify niche markets
Clearly define and cater to segments underserved by bigger players.

Direct comparisons
Boldly illustrate why their product is superior or uniquely suited to certain customer needs.

Price and innovation disruption
Provide clear, compelling reasons for customers to shift loyalties, such as better value, superior features, or an improved experience.

Rapid responsiveness
Agile enough to pivot quickly, taking advantage of slower-moving competitors.

Samsung’s initial entry into the smartphone market shows this perfectly. Rather than attempting to recreate Apple’s approach, Samsung capitalised on the gaps Apple left behind, larger screens, customisation, and pricing flexibility. Direct comparative marketing positioned Samsung as a better alternative, significantly eating into Apple’s dominance.

HelloFresh vs Methodology

HelloFresh: leadership strategy

In the meal kit industry, HelloFresh is the undisputed category leader. Much like McDonald’s in fast food, HelloFresh is shaping the category itself. The company has set the gold standard for meal kit services, defining consumer expectations around freshness, convenience, and variety. With a dominant market share, HelloFresh continually grows the overall market, turning non-users into loyal subscribers rather than battling competitors head-on. For HelloFresh, the long-term play is clear: grow the category, and they will naturally capture the majority of that growth.

Their strategy involves:

Acquisition through ease
Attracting new customers by positioning meal kits as convenient, attractive alternatives to traditional grocery shopping.

Retention through innovation
Offering varied menus and premium options, encouraging regular and consistent use.

Defining industry standards
Leading with sustainability practices and customer-centric innovations, forcing competitors to catch up.

Methodology: earn-share strategy

Conversely, Methodology employs a classic earn-share strategy. This premium, health-conscious brand directly targets niche segments of affluent consumers who desire more curated and high-quality meal experiences. While this earn-share approach allows Methodology to carve out a space in the market without the heavy investment needed to grow the category, it has limitations. As the company scales, it will face the challenge of moving beyond a niche audience. At some point, Methodology may need to pivot toward a category leadership strategy, expanding the total market rather than just drawing off high-end consumers from HelloFresh.

Their strategy involves:

Precision niche targeting
Exclusively addressing affluent, health-focused consumers, differentiating strongly from mass-market brands.

Explicit positioning
Boldly contrasting their high-quality meals and curated experiences against more mainstream alternatives.

Premium exclusivity
Ensuring their brand remains a key consideration within the premium consumer segment.

Shifting gears: moving from challenger to leader

The Earn-Share approach is powerful for initial market penetration, yet brands often find it unsustainable over the long term. A critical moment arrives when a successful challenger must decide if and how to pivot towards becoming a market leader.

Samsung evolved its strategy from directly challenging Apple to leading with innovative categories like foldable phones and wearables. Similarly, brands like Tesla and Amazon started as disruptive forces but eventually took leadership roles, reshaping their industries.

Which strategy is right for you?

To determine your brand’s ideal growth strategy, consider:

• Are you positioned to define and expand your entire market category, or are you more effective as a strategic disruptor?
• Do you possess the resources for sustained category expansion, or would a targeted niche strategy yield quicker and more achievable growth?
• Are you aiming for rapid market penetration, or is your vision focused on sustained, long-term influence?

Leaders expand markets and redefine expectations. Challengers seize opportunities and target precisely. Successful brands recognise when to pivot from disruption to market leadership.

So, is your brand ready to lead, or strategically disrupt?